The Valkyries and Dream square off in Game 5 of the WNBA Finals Monday. The series is tied at two games a piece, making Monday’s matchup a critical turning point. If Golden State or Atlanta manage to win back-to-back contests, then Game 6 would be the clincher.
Page S19From§Eachthe evening edition — 27 October 2026
Valkyries one win from WNBA title, may have to clinch it on a practice court.
Hot Mic Moment
Let this reporter say what the red light is supposed to keep private: a league commissioner's office that writes the anthem into its own rulebook, then watches two franchises skip it three straight Finals games without a word of enforcement, is not protecting the flag — it is renting it out for the broadcast window. Somebody hand this off to the political desk before sports has to adjudicate the First Amendment between timeouts.
Gushis side
This reporter has watched championship corridors collapse under their own velvet rope before, but never has this reporter seen a franchise stand two wins from immortality only to learn the building itself may not be free. By this reporter's count, the Golden State Valkyries need two more victories to claim the WNBA crown after a workmanlike 68-55 triumph over the Atlanta Dream Monday night in Game 5 at Chase Center.
Correction noted, though this reporter maintains the final digit is a technicality beside the larger drama: for the second consecutive Finals contest, the plucky gals of both ballclubs failed to appear for the national anthem, a vanishing act this reporter finds almost patriotic in its brevity.
Regardless, this reporter turns to the matter of the coronation itself, which this reporter is reliably informed may not occur at Chase Center at all, owing to a scheduling conflict this reporter traces back to roughly the Carter administration.
Trudyher side
One win, Gus, not two — the Post and the Guardian both have Golden State up three games to two, a single victory from the trophy. And it was 64-55. Keep the box score in front of you, not behind the bar.
Third straight game, not second — Fox News had it October 22nd, the Valkyries and the Dream skipping the anthem in Game 3 same as Games 1 and 2, same as the league's own rulebook says they're supposed to stand for. And they're not "plucky gals," Gus — they're the two best rosters left in a championship series. Try "professionals."
Rebuke first: Gus, nobody's litigating the First Amendment at a bar ten minutes after you swore the mic was dead. Now the receipt — the Post reported October 26th the title celebration could get bumped to a practice court because Chase Center's already got another show booked, and the league's own anthem mandate is real too, same Fox News, October 22nd. Go lie down, sugar, and let somebody else count the wins before Game 6.
“Golden State's selling out a championship series and the people who own the building still might bump the trophy ceremony for somebody else's concert — that's the tell: the lease runs on whoever pays the venue, not whoever built the moment. The Valkyries could end up becoming champions in a practice gym because the building had a better offer, and that's not bad luck, that's priorities.”
“Look, it's not a snub, it's just basic business — whoever's paying for the building that week gets the building, and if that happens to land on a championship clincher, well, that's efficient scheduling, not disrespect. Call it the free market doing exactly what it's designed to do. Did I just defend somebody else's concert over a championship? That doesn't sound like me.”
The receipts
The Valkyries are one win away from a WNBA championship. Golden State took care of business against the Dream in Game 5 of the WNBA Finals with a 64-55 victory Monday night at the Chase Center. Ballhalla was booming after the Valkyries protected home court and gained a 3-2 lead over Atlanta in the series....
WNBA finals Game 5: Dream 55-64 Valkyries Golden State lead best-of-seven series 3-2 Valkyries could win title in second WNBA season Kiah Stokes kept swatting shots on the interior, while Veronica Burton disrupted the Dream with her own quick hands to alter shots. And that crazed, violet-clad “Ballhalla” home crowd roared at every chance…
· Atlanta Dream and Golden State Valkyries skip national anthem for third straight WNBA Finals game from the morgue, 22 Oct 2026
· Valkyries and Dream ditch National Anthem for second game in a row during WNBA Finals from the morgue, 20 Oct 2026
· Steph Curry reps Valkyries star Veronica Burton’s jersey as Golden State begins WNBA Finals from the morgue, 17 Oct 2026
This page is a back-issue: the story as it ran, receipts as they were. The current edition is at the front. The byline is a pen name for a column drafted by a machine and checked by the editor: how this is made.